Door bumper

ABSTRACT

A wall mounted door knob bumper having a resilient cushioning member attached to a flexible adhesive carrying backing member such as a flexible sheet of plastic attached to and extending beyond the periphery of the cushioning member to form a decorative border. The cushioning member may be made in various cross-sectional configurations some of which are solid and some having apertures therein. The exposed portion of the backing member may be made in any number of different designs such as flowers, geometric patterns, or any other desired motif. The bumper is attached to a wall simply by peeling a protective cover off the adhesive backing and pressing the bumper in the desired location on a wall where it will be contacted by a doorknob.

United States Patent 1191 Kempf 1111 3,824,649 July 23, 1974 4] DOOR BUMPER 5,161 9/1909 Great Britain 16/86 A [76] Inventor: Donald F. Kempf, 435 N. Lincoln 51,, O C lif. 92666 Zrimary Examiner--Pva,u:lR. Glglllilamdd ssistant Examineri iam y ane [22] 1972 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Paul E. Milliken [21] Appl. No.: 311,932

[57] ABSTRACT v C(Ill A Wall mounted door knob bumper having a resilient [58] a 48/205 cushioning member attached to a flexible adhesive {61/167 carrying backing member such as a flexible sheet of plastic attached to and extending beyond the periph- [56] References Cited ery of the cushioning member to form a decorative 1 border. The cushioning member may be made in vari- UNITED STATES PATENTS I ous cross-sectional configurations some of which are 329,321 10/1885 Leger 292/D1G. 8 solid and some having apertures therein The exposed 2,115,449 6/1937 Pradt..... 248/205 A portion f the ki e b may b d i any g iZ Q number of different designs such as flowers, geometric an patterns, or any other desired motif. The bumper is 3 409,257 3/1967 Elm 248/205 A 3 687 792 8/1972 Ruff 161/406 x attached to a wall SmPIY by Peelmg a Pmtectve off the adhesive backing and pressing the bumper in FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS the desired location on a wall where it will be con- 1,169,10O 0/1969 Great Britain 161/167 tacted by a doorknob. 1,050,987 2/1964 Great Britain 16/86 R 913,107 9/1960 Great Britain 248/205 A 4 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures J i I -c-- 1 noon BUMPER PRIOR ART OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 3 It is an object of this invention to provide a door knob bumper which is simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, attractive in appearance and easily attached to the wall without damaging the wall or leaving any holes in the wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front-elevational view showing one embodiment of the invention mounted on a wall;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side viewof the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 with a portion of the cover sheet peeled back from the adhesive layer;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view through another embodiment of a cushioning member having a recessed center;

FIG. is a cross-sectional view through another type of cushioning member having a hole through the center;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view through another type of cushioning member;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view through another type of cushioning member having a rearwardly facing cavit FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view through the cushioning member shown in FIG. 7 but showing the cushion-- ing member under compression from a doorknob;

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of another type of cushioning member having radially outwardly extending petal-like members; and

FIG. is a cross-sectional view taken on line l0l0 of FIG. 9.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT S In FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings a bumper 1 is attached to a wall 2. The bumper 1 has a resilient cushion 3 made preferably of rubber, deformable plastic, or any other suitable material having' the desired resilient properties to properly cushion the blow of a doorknob and protect the wall from damage. The cushion 3 is shown in FIGS. 1 through 3 as being dome shaped and having a flat back side 4 to which is adhered a backing sheet 5 made of flexible plastic or other suitable material. A layer 6 of pressure sensitive adhesive covers the back side of the sheet 5. The adhesive layer 6 is covered by a removeable protective cover sheet 7 shown partially peeled back in FIG. 3. By removing the cover sheet 7 and pressing the bumper 1 against the wall the adhesive layer causes the bumper to stick to the wall without the need for any other type of fastener.

The backing sheet 5 extends beyond the periphery of the cushion 3 and forms a decorative border around the cushion. The sheet 5 is made with a contrasting peripheral contour to that of the bumper 3. In FIG. 1 sheet 5 has a peripheral contour in the shape of flower petals and the round bumper 3 serves as the center portion of the simulated flower. The sheet 5 could of course be made in various shapes and colors and combined with other shapes of cushions as will hereafter be described.

In FIG. 4 a cushion 8 of another shape is shown having a round peripheral ring portion 9 surrounding a round recess 10 in the center thereof on the front side of the cushion 8 and having a flat back side 11.

A cushion 12 is shown in FIG. 5 in the shape of a ring having a rounded front portion 13 and a flat back side 14.

A cushion 15 in FIG. 6 is similar to the cushion 8 in FIG. 4 but it has a ring 16 in which the sides are tapered at a wider angle with respect to each other than they are in the ring 9. The ring 16 surrounds a centrally located round recess 17: on the front side and the back side 18 of the ring 15 is flat.

FIGS. 7 and 8 shows another embodiment of bumper 19 having a peripheral base ring portion 20, an intermediate portion 21 connecting the ring portion 20 to a round center portion 22 which is contacted by a doorknob 23 shown in FIG. 8. The base ring portion 20 is substantially triangular in cross section and tapers from a wide flat back side 24 to a thin apex where it joins with the thin intermediate portion 21. The center portion 22 has a rearwardly facing conical portion 25 with an apex'26 facing rearwardly of the bumper 19. The taper of the conical portion 25 and the inner surface of ring portion 20 is such that it defines an annular cavity 27 on the back side of the bumper 19.

The cross sectional design of the bumper 19 is such that when the door knob 23 contacts the center portion 22 of bumper 19, it drives the center portion rearwardly into the cavity 27. As the center portion 22 first moves rearwardly, the intermediate portion 21 is drawn rearwardly and radially inwardly by the center portion 22 in a rolling motion. This movement offers some resistance to the doorknob and hence starts to slow down ,the rearward travel of the doorknob gradually. As the center portion 22 continues to move rearwardly the apex 26 of the conical portion 25 contacts the backing sheet 28 next to the wall 29 and as the conical portion 25 is compressed against the backing sheet 28 it progressively exerts more and more resistance to the force of the doorknob. This is because the manner in which the conical portion 25 is tapered. When the apex 26 first touches the backing sheet 28 there is little resistance since the diameter of the conical portion is less at that position. As the conical portion is moved farther rearwardly there is a larger diameter of the conical portion under compression and therefore the resistance increases progressively and the diameter under compression increases. The result of this cross-sectional design is that the movement of the doorknob is slowed down gradually but at an increasing rate as the knob 23 pushes the center portion 22 further rearwardly. This means that the doorknob will not meet abrubt resistance which will cause it to rebound abruptly after v 3 striking the cushion 19 and strike someone passing through the door. Depending upon the resilint properties of the material from which the bumper 19 is made it may be desirable to have pressure release ports between the cavity 27 and the outside of the bumper 19 to release excessive pressure build-up in the cavity when thedoorknob pushes the center portion 22 rearwardly as shown in FIG. 8. In some instances such ports may not be needed and for the sake of simplicty have not been shown in the present drawings.

FIGS. 9 and show an another embodiment of cushion 30 having a round, relatively thick center portion 31 having a flat back side 32 and a domed front side 33. A plurality of petal shaped members 34 extend radially outwardly from the center portion 31 and are integral therewith. Each petal member is thickest near its base and tapers to a thinner dimension at its tip. The

wardly in such a position that the outer tips 35 are first contacted by the doorknob when it strikes the bumper cushion 30. Since the tips are thinner the doorknob meets with less resistance at first contact and then progressively greater resistance as the petals 34 are bent rearwardly and the knob contacts thicker portions of the petals. Thus the cushion 30 provides gradually increasing resistance to the movement of the doorknob based on a similar principle to that illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8.

While certain'embodiments have been shown and described herein for the purposes of illustrating the invention it will beobvious that various other modifications and combinations may be made in the embodiments shown. herein without departing from the scope of the invention. Both the backingsheets and cushionsmay be made in various shapes and colors and from various materials so long as they have the necessary physical properties to function as required.

I claim:

l. A wall mounted doorknob bumper comprising:

A. a resilient cushion member having a substantially flat rear surface,

B. a backing sheet of thin flexible material adhered to the rear surface of the cushion member and extending radially outwardly beyond the periphery of the cushion member to form a border therearound which has a peripheral contour of contrasting shape to that of the cushion member,

C. said backing sheet having rearwardly facing pressure sensitive adhesive for securing the bumper on a wall surface when the bumper is pressed thereagainst and a removeable cover sheet to protect the adhesive until the bumper is mounted on a wall,

D. said cushion member being shaped in a configuration to project outwardly from the wall on which it is mounted and engage a doorknob of an opened door, thereby preventing damage to the wall, said cushion member comprising a relatively thick peripheral base ring portion of substantially triangular cross-section and having a flat rear surface for attachment to the backing sheet, a round center petals in cross-section curve forwardly and radially outportion, the rear of which is of substantially conical shape with the apex extending rearwardly to make contact with the backing sheet when the center section is pushed rearwardly by a doorknob striking it, and a relatively thin intermediate portion joining the base ring portion and center portion and supporting the center portion a spaced distance from the backing sheet, said intermediate portion being sufficiently flexible to resistably permit the center portion to move rearwardly when struck by a doorknob and seat temporarily against the backing sheet and the .wall supporting the backing sheet,

E. all components of the bumper being cooperatively flexible to permit the bumper to conform to any surface irregularities of the wall on which the bumper is mounted.

2. A wall mounted doorknob bumper as claimed in claim 1 wherein the backing sheet is made of plastic.

3. A wall mounted doorknob bumper comprisingi A. a resilient cushion member having a substantially flat rear surface, B. a backing sheet of thin flexible material adhered to the rear surface of the cushion member and extending radially outwardly beyond the periphery of the cushion member to form a border therearound which has a peripheral contour of contrasting shape to that of the cushion member, C. said backing sheet having rearwardly facing pressure sensitive adhesive for securing the bumper on a wall surface'when the bumper is pressed thereagainst and a removeable cover sheet to protect the adhesive until the bumper is mounted on a wall, D. said cushion member being shaped in a configuration to project outwardly from the wall on which it is mounted and engage a doorknob of an opened door, thereby preventing damage to the wall, said cushion member having a round center portion and a plurality of radially outwardly extending members integral therewith, said members being thinner at their outer extremities than at their radially inner ends to provide progressively greater flexibility from the center portion toward the outer extremities of the members, the outer extremities of the members being spaced a greater distance from the wall on which the bumper is mounted than the radially inner ends of the members, whereby a doorknob hitting the bumper first contacts the thinner outer extremities of the members and then bends the members toward the wall so that it contacts progressively thicker and stiffer portions of the members and thereby the resistance to the doorknob is progressively increased, E. all components of the bumper being cooperatively flexible to permit the bumper to conform to any surface irregularities of the wall on which the bum- I per is mounted. 4. A wall mounted doorknob bumper as claimed in claim 3 wherein the backing sheet is made of plastic. 

1. A wall mounted doorknob bumper comprising: A. a resilient cushion member having a substantially flat rear surface, B. a backing sheet of thin flexible material adhered to the rear surface of the cushion member and extending radially outwardly beyond the periphery of the cushion member to form a border therearound which has a peripheral contour of contrasting shape to that of the cushion member, C. said backing sheet having rearwardly facing pressure sensitive adhesive for securing the bumper on a wall surface when the bumper is pressed thereagainst and a removeable cover sheet to protect the adhesive until the bumper is mounted on a wall, D. said cushion member being shaped in a configuration to project outwardly from the wall on which it is mounted and engage a doorknob of an opened door, thereby preventing damage to the wall, said cushion member comprising a relatively thick peripheral base ring portion of substantially triangular crosssection and having a flat rear surface for attachment to the backing sheet, a round center portion, the rear of which is of substantially conical shape with the apex extending rearwardly to make contact with the backing sheet when the center section is pushed rearwardly by a doorknob striking it, and a relatively thin intermediate portion joining the base ring portion and center portion and supporting the center portion a spaced distance from the backing sheet, said intermediate portion being sufficiently flexible to resistably permit the center portion to move rearwardly when struck by a doorknob and seat temporarily against the backing sheet and the wall supporting the backing sheet, E. all components of the bumper being cooperatively flexible to permit the bumper to conform to any surface irregularities of the wall on which the bumper is mounted.
 2. A wall mounted doorknob bumper as claimed in claim 1 wherein the backing sheet is made of plastic.
 3. A wall mounted doorknob bumper comprising: A. a resilient cushion member having a substantially flat rear surface, B. a backing sheet of thin flexible material adhered to the rear surface of the cushion member and extending radially outwardly beyond the periphery of the cushion member to form a border therearound which has a peripheral contour of contrasting shape to that of the cushion member, C. said backing sheet having rearwardly facing pressure sensitive adhesIve for securing the bumper on a wall surface when the bumper is pressed thereagainst and a removeable cover sheet to protect the adhesive until the bumper is mounted on a wall, D. said cushion member being shaped in a configuration to project outwardly from the wall on which it is mounted and engage a doorknob of an opened door, thereby preventing damage to the wall, said cushion member having a round center portion and a plurality of radially outwardly extending members integral therewith, said members being thinner at their outer extremities than at their radially inner ends to provide progressively greater flexibility from the center portion toward the outer extremities of the members, the outer extremities of the members being spaced a greater distance from the wall on which the bumper is mounted than the radially inner ends of the members, whereby a doorknob hitting the bumper first contacts the thinner outer extremities of the members and then bends the members toward the wall so that it contacts progressively thicker and stiffer portions of the members and thereby the resistance to the doorknob is progressively increased, E. all components of the bumper being cooperatively flexible to permit the bumper to conform to any surface irregularities of the wall on which the bumper is mounted.
 4. A wall mounted doorknob bumper as claimed in claim 3 wherein the backing sheet is made of plastic. 